04 Jan 2023 A dental extraction is the removal of teeth from its socket in the alveolar bone. Extractions are done for a variety of reasons, but most commonly extraction is essentially done to remove teeth which no longer is healthy and serve good purpose but rather cause pain, either due to cavity through tooth decay, periodontal disease, and dental trauma, associated with toothache.
Sometimes wisdom tooth causes infections of the gums, when all other treatments have failed. This happens because, they are not able to grow out properly due to lack of space in the gums. In orthodontics and dental care, if the teeth are crowded, healthy teeth may be extracted to create space so the rest of the teeth can be straightened.
Whether you get a simple extraction or extraction done through surgery, the process almost always begins with an anaesthesia for the tooth, gum, and surrounding tissue. Initially, you might feel a bite of the needle and thereafter during the surgery you are going to feel nothing at all. After the effect of anaesthesia has gone, you might feel some patients, however many patients have said that they do not feel any pain at all.
After tooth extraction, patients are generally asked to rest for 48-72 hours, so that the area treated can clot, after which they can return to their normal physical activity. The soft tissue usually takes about 3-4 weeks to heal. Let us have a look at the extraction process:-
- Expose the tooth and bone, by making an incision in the gum tissue.
- Removing bone, blocking access to the tooth root.
- Dividing the tooth into sections to remove in pieces, in order to make the process less painful.
- Removing tooth.
- Cleaning the site of debris accumulated from the tooth removal.
Tooth extraction usually is a minor surgery. However, when infection spreads deep inside gums, it might require major surgery to remove the infected teeth completely from its roots. It might take longer to heal in case of major surgery.
Most dental surgery do not require stitches. But if your dentist cuts into the gums which is also known as gum tissue, you may need stitches. You dentist will let you know whether the stitches are going to dissolve on their own or you require to visit the dentist again to get them removed. Some extractions may not require stitches at all. The first night your extraction done is its best to sleep by your side for best results and healing. You might experience more swelling if you sleep on your back. It can also increase your pain.
Some patients, undergoing tooth extraction or removal or surgery, may want to take a day off from work just to ensure they can rest well and arrest the immediate side effects of the procedure. Other patients may not require to spend a day for recovering and are able to return to work the very next day, as long as it is not physically exhausting.
What to do and avoid after tooth extraction
Tooth extraction can be painful. Immediately after tooth extraction, we should strictly avoid these activities:-
- Avoid drinking with a straw. Sucking with the help of a straw may dislodge the blood clot.
- Avoid drinking hot liquids, as they may increase swelling. Cold liquids and ice creams are the best. Limit your alcohol intake. Intake of alcohol may slow down healing.
- Totally avoid smoking as it may break down the blood clot. This can cause a painful tooth socket.
- Rinse your mouth very gently. Or else the blood clot may get dislodged.
- Do eat a light diet, which is softer on mouth and light on your stomach.
- Brush very gently, without applying any pressure on teeth and gums.
- Ensure to keep the extraction area clean and dirt free.
Immediately call your dentist if:-
- Pain worsens
- Bleeding does not stop
- Swelling around the extracted tooth worsen
- Itching or rashes appear on skin after taking medicine.
Healing rate is different for individuals and varies. While some patients may recover in a week’s time others may take 2 weeks or even more to repair completely.
How many teeth can be extracted at once?
There are no such rules on the quantity of tooth that can be extracted. Numerous tooth can be extracted at once, but this procedure is only done when tooth decay happens, and they ought to be removed to avoid infecting other healthy tooth adjacent to the decayed tooth. However, a full mouth extraction may require you not to consume anything for 8-12 hours before the surgery, as it’s an oral surgery, and ought to be treated as any other surgery happening in the body.
Your dentist will make you aware of what is expected of you before the time comes so that you can be prepared. It is very important to remember to never sleep with the gauze in your mouth, because it can lead to choking while you sleep.
It is also essential to be mindful that you do not sleep, while the gauze on if you are taking medicines that cause drowsiness. After the dental procedure is done, some discomfort, swelling, sensitivity, or pain is naturally expected. The pain experienced is mainly due to the underlying gum inflammation.
Pain is usually going to stay over for the next four to five days normally. If it persists beyond that you should immediately seek the help of dentist, without any further delay. It is found that Molar teeth are the most frequently extracted, with an increased number of extracted first premolars as a result of orthodontic treatment.
Antibiotics are given just before or after the surgery to reduce the risk of infection or inflammation and dry socket after the removal of teeth by dental surgeons. Antibiotics heal the wound quickly and prevents infection from dev eloping and spreading in the body.
Tooth extraction is done with a purpose in mind and makes room for something better. It can help prevent your other healthy tooth from getting infected and also preserve your smile and confidence.
Is it painful to remove a broken tooth?
It is important to remember that tooth extraction isn’t going to be hassle-free or without pain, whether it is a whole tooth or a broken tooth, pain is very common and likely to happen. If not pain some discomfort is expected. Discomfort such as swelling, irritation, tenderness is more common. Although these are treatable and recoverable over time, but can be overwhelming to face.
If your tooth breaks off suddenly, immediately visit a dentist as soon as possible. Immediate visit can recover back the lost tooth. A broken tooth is not something to be ignored. It can cause severe infection if left untreated and open.
Tooth extraction offers a large number of benefits. It reduces the action of harmful bacteria that can damage your teeth and gums completely. When left untreated, a damaged tooth can wreak havoc on your dental health, causing a further domino effect of problems. Removing your affected tooth gives you the best chance for optimal oral health. Additionally, a tooth extraction can help ease dental pain almost immediately — especially if your tooth is severely broken, with no chance of repair.
Tooth extraction for diabetics
Tooth extraction is an emergency that can happen to anybody at anytime. But again if you are a diabetic or have high blood pressure levels, you need to be careful and must make a mention of it to your dentist before the surgery. Having high blood glucose means you are more prone to infections and inflammation and any surgery that is done to a diabetic patient requires time to heal. Any surgery done to a diabetic must be done first by normalizing the blood sugar level, and then operating the wound.
Post-surgery also a diabetic patient needs to be extremely careful and take his medicines on time. He should only consume the foods suggested by his doctor and seek medical attention immediately if any problem arises. Diabetic patients are more susceptible to infections and inflammation on a daily basis. So, they are to be handled with utmost care just as is done for small children and infants. People with uncontrolled diabetes cannot heal properly or quickly after surgery, because blood flow to the treatment can be damaged.
During the surgery of diabetic patients, anaesthesia can aggravate their condition. Patients with poorly controlled blood glucose may have serious complications such as ketoacidosis, circulatory failure, postoperative infectious complications and even death.
Healing is delayed in diabetes since higher blood glucose levels can lead to stiffer blood vessels, causing slower circulation and microvascular dysfunction, which causes reduced tissue oxygenation. When you have diabetes, your body produces comparatively lesser enzymes and hormones that makes our immune less effective. Some of the foods to be totally avoided by diabetics are:
- Fried meats
- Processed foods
- Foods rich in high sugar content
- Foods having high salt content.
- Foods containing saturated fats.
- Cheese
- Oily foods
Complications after Tooth Extraction
If you need a tooth extracted, your dental professional will remove your tooth from its bony socket in the upper or lower jaw. The bone then must heal. Sometimes during this process, complications arise, like dry socket and infection. Details for each follow:
Dry Socket: A very common complication after the removal of tooth is dry socket. It occurs when the blood clot that fills the void left by the extracted tooth becomes dislodged. The clot acts as a bandage within the mouth during healing process, whereas its total absence can leave the nerves exposed and cause discomfort. Have you ever noticed that in patients, post-surgery, the bone in the socket is visible, when experiencing severe pain in the days following extraction? see your dental professional immediately?
Infection in the Mouth: Following an extraction, another potential complication is the development of a dental infection. That’s because, after any surgery or dental procedure, there’s a high chance of bacteria entering the body, and creating infection. There are certain signs of an infection in the mouth, you may notice which includes bad breath, a sour or bitter taste, fever, sensitivity to hot and cold, and swelling or tenderness in the gums, neck, or jaw.
The main thing is to report any symptoms of complications early, so you can treat the issue right away and decrease the chances of developing complications any further.
Does our face alignment change after tooth extraction?
The easiest answer to this is no. Because our cheeks are solid enough to support or jaws and hence as long as we are young, our face alignment does not change, due to extraction. It only happens to older adults, who have no other option left than to opt for false tooth. Tooth extraction is not an easy process. Neither is it something very essential. Safe and healthy lifestyle can ensure healthy tooth and gums.
Dentists do not prefer extracting tooth in the first instance. They try to cure the dental disorder, with the help of medicines first of all. Only when there lies no other remedy apart from tooth extraction, do they opt for it. Dentists try their best to complete the procedure in such a way that will cause minimum complication and pain to patients. However, If an upper tooth is removed, it may cause asymmetry, and result in some parts of the face looking sunken in, and when a lower tooth is extracted, it may lead to an under-bite or asymmetry.
There are certain factors that lead to facial asymmetry such as injury in the face, aging, smoking habits, and such other factors can contribute to asymmetry. There are some asymmetry that’s mild and has always been there and is normal. However, some new changes in facial alignment or asymmetry may be a serious sign or serious condition, arising out of Bell’s palsy or stroke.
A normal reaction to facial surgery is swelling. Twenty-four hours post-surgery, the application of moist heat, slowly to the face with the help of a tissue or handkerchief is beneficial in reducing the swelling. During the first 3-5 days after surgery, it is completely normal to have one side be more swollen than the other side.
Many people have the fear that teeth extraction might ruin their facial alignment leading to a distorted face, which can take away their facial beauty and leave them less confident. It might often happen. But it’s wiser to get a teeth, causing problems removed, than to keep it with cavity and let the other tooth get infected. Oral infections can also lead to digestive problems and inflammation of the whole body. Food enters our body through the mouth. Any if our mouth itself is a store house of infection, our entire body is under possible threat. So, it is always wise to treat any oral infection, sore, cavities, gum disease with utmost precaution and care.
Cardiac Health and its connection with tooth extraction and oral health.
Researchers have found that gum disease is associated with and increased risk of developing heart disease. Poor dental health increases the risk of bacterial infection in the bloodstream which can damage the heart valves. Oral health and hygiene is particularly important if you have artificial heart valves. For this reason, any tooth with cavities or infections that has spread to its roots must be removed on an immediate basis. When the blood vessels are inflamed it may cause tiny blood clots, heart attack and the chances of stroke may increase. Even antibiotic treatment cannot cure inflammation that cause damage to blood vessels.
When the body’s immune response fails- it leads to inflammation that cause damage to the vascular system of heart and brain. So infection and inflammation of any part of body, should not be ignored and should be given immediate attention.
Although there is no direct connection between heart health and tooth extraction or oral disease, but oral disease when aggravates to cause serious illness, can damage certain cells and body parts, including the heart and even the brain. Cardiac health is of prime importance because, our heart is the lifeline of our body. It is the regulator of the entire body as well as the central nervous system.
Our heart is responsible for pumping blood and supplying oxygen to all parts of the body. Maintaining heart health is of primary importance. For this everyday yoga and meditation is of great help. Yoga and meditation keeps away many diseases and prevents the body from infection and infestations.
Heart disease and Cardiac health are related largely due to smoking habits. Smoking can injure your heart and lungs and affect your immune system. Smoking is injurious to health, it can spread a local infection to the entire body, and affect normal body functioning. It also damages tooth and gums, aggravating already infected ones.
According to research more than 80 percent of Americans suffer from periodontal disease which are often left untreated and undiagnosed. This may happen because a patient may not feel anything till the time inflammation aggravates to become worse.
Calcium intake is very important for our teeth and bones. As we start ageing, calcium in our bones and teeth start fading away, particularly for women, and must be restored to ensure smooth and healthy functioning of body and mind. Research has shown that prolonged tooth and gum problems can even lead to depression.
Each organ of our body is connected to another and hence, we must maintain a healthy diet and living in order to lead a healthy life. Tooth can also be extracted because lower calcium intake may erode it leading to no way out apart from extracting it completely from its roots. We must ensure that our tooth is enriched with calcium. We must avoid toothpastes that erode the tooth enamel, or food that causes damage to the tooth enamel.
Tooth are vital parts of our body, with the help of which we chew our food and help our body get the essential nutrients. The saliva secreted during chewing also helps in digestion. Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one’s mouth clean and germ free by developing good habits such as brushing teeth twice a day, flossing, avoiding sugar rich food. Oral health is related with the healthy functioning of all other body parts. Often ignored and considered as secondary, oral health should be taken very seriously and regular dental checkup should be strictly followed, along with regular oral hygiene practices. Irrespective of age oral hygiene must be followed to keep oral diseases at bay.
Tooth extraction is the last resort to opt for when there is no other alternative left with us. Milk is a calcium rich food that is very important for our health. It provides us with the necessary calcium required by our body. Many people are lactose intolerant and cannot digest milk. They can opt for vegan options such as soy milk, to make sure that their body is supplied with the necessary nutrients and is healthy.
Both for teeth and bones, calcium is very important. Along with calcium, Vitamin D is also very important. It helps the absorption of calcium possible for our body.